History, the longer it is studied, has a way of changing the facts once perceived as truths by scholars, mathematicians, and the populace, both educated and unschooled. Such is the Island of Lesbos, from which the word lesbian originated. Lesbos was/is a part of ancient Greece and was/is a large Island in the Aegean Sea. You probably already knew that, but did you know they issued their own coins? Here's some photos of their mytilene coins with auction info about each coin shown.Though this list is large, it,by no means, is a complete showcase of Lesbos' coinage: http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=32138&AucID=36&Lot=676 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=109336&AucID=124&Lot=244 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=109255&AucID=124&Lot=243 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=32229&AucID=36&Lot=672 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=31216&AucID=36&Lot=677 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=31236&AucID=36&Lot=675 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=32023&AucID=36&Lot=659 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=8974&AucID=20&Lot=713 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=31625&AucID=36&Lot=664 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=8344&AucID=20&Lot=712 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=33279&AucID=36&Lot=679 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=68334&AucID=73&Lot=228 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=6201&AucID=8&Lot=458 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=33001&AucID=36&Lot=670 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=31403&AucID=36&Lot=680 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=124794&AucID=144&Lot=333 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=5632&AucID=8&Lot=1420 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=6050&AucID=8&Lot=1421 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=6051&AucID=8&Lot=460 http://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=5981&AucID=8&Lot=1415 Clinker
Clinker,it must be remembered that in the time of the Ancient Greeks,there was no country called Greece.Like Italy,ancient Greece was a collection of very insular city-states who were very jealously protective of their independence.The most well-known rivalry that that of Athens & Sparta,who even went to war against each other on a number of occasions. As a way of asserting their independence,the ancient Greek city-states issued their own coins.A coin from Athens was not legal tender in Corinth or Sparta,& vice-versa. Aidan.
True to a degree. Athens, Corinth, and Sparta were seperate city-states, and Lesbos was an independent state as well. However, there were alliances/empires. Lesbos was part of the Athenian "empire" (and one of only a handful of states allowed by the Athenians - who power was nautical based - to maintain a navy). Corinth and Sparta were in the same basic orbit (to call them allies would be a bit much). As a result, while not properly legal tender as we understand it, Athenian coins would have been accepted on Lesbos, and, to a lesser degree, Spartan in the very cosmopolitan Corinth.
And in Greece's hiatus its coinage was the hegemony in a wide area of the continent and during the heighth of Athenian influence its coinage was the hegemony of the continent.... Cklinker
That is why the Athenian owl was later used as a design on a Greek 1 Drachma in 1973,& is now on the obverse of the Greek 1 Euro coin. Aidan.
They were not only the first "true" coins as Clinker has discussed in a previous Trivia,but In my opinion,some of the most beautiful and innovative designs EVER created! Check out this man frolicking with what appears to be a mermaid..2500 years ago..LOL
The first true coins were the electrum pieces from Lydia (now in Turkey) that were issued during the reign of King Croesus. Aidan.
You are right, Aiden, but that wasn't the reason for this trivia. This trivia dealt with the ancient coinage of Lesbos. You rightly pointed out the relationship to its City-state status and Lesbos' being in Crecian and Athenian hegemony over the ages. And under that hegemony Greek coins were first, the Athenian pieces came along later and still later Roman hegemony took over.... Clinker
